Democrats are sticking with God, standing up for gays

Updated 12:33 am, Friday, September 7, 2012

Those words, from Mayor Julián Castro to his daughter, and from the Catholic mayor to America, served as the emotional apex of his keynote address, which also affirmed the rights of gays to marry.

When Castro delivered the speech here Tuesday, his emphasis on God was distinctive, for the Democratic Party had removed any mention of the deity from its 2012 platform.

The next day, after a flare-up in the hall, Democrats voted to restore the reference.

Castro's call for gay rights, however, was firmly in line with the modern Democratic Party, which made history in its platform this year, along with President Barack Obama, by declaring support for same-sex marriage.

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If Castro's speech implied compatibility between religion and gay rights, then another Democratic mayor, Cory Booker of Newark, N.J., made the link explicit on Thursday.

In a packed ballroom, at a meeting of the LGBT caucus, Booker said that opposing gay marriage equaled an assault on civil rights – and he invoked the righteousness of God in his reproach:

“I'm telling you right now, those walls of bigotry, those walls of inequality, those walls of resistance will crumble because I believe in a God that will let righteousness roll down like water and justice as a mighty stream.”

The ballroom erupted in a roar of approval.

But what of the voters?

Politically, the Democratic Party is playing its hands on gay rights and God for different reasons, the former as a risky gamble to distinguish it from the GOP, the latter as a safe bet to avoid an unwanted contrast.

Could affirming both at the same time prove alienating?

Consider Bexar County, a Democratic redoubt in red-state Texas and home to more than half a million Catholics.

“In the teachings of the church, changing the definition of marriage is a conflict, yes,” said Father Leo Perez, professor of moral theology at the Oblate School of Theology in San Antonio.

The Catholic Church, he added, supports “basic human rights” for gays, such as employment and housing.

Does this mean the church doesn't consider marriage a basic human right?

“Marriage between one man and one woman is a basic human right,” he answered.

Deducing, perhaps, from my pause that I considered this response ironic, Perez said, “These are really complex issues, and you have to be very careful how you talk about them.”

“I have the problem we all have when we speak here,” said Frank, the first openly gay congressman and the first to enter into a same-sex marriage. “There are a lot of issues to talk about. So the question is, ‘Which one do you pick?'

“There are a number that interest me, like why it is that so many Republicans are afraid my marriage would threaten theirs.”

Frank used the rest of his time to tear into Mitt Romney's positions on the economy.

But he'd made his point: Same-sex marriage is not a complex issue.

What's complex is a stance that affirms marriage as a human right, then withholds it from certain humans.

Sticking with God while standing up for gays, Democrats are hoping that voters, including the devout, agree.